The Witches is a horror film-horror horror fantasy UK/America 1990 based on a children's novel of the same name by Roald Dahl. The film was directed by Nicolas Roeg and produced by The Jim Henson Company for Lorimar Film Entertainment and Warner Bros. The film stars Anjelica Huston, Mai Zetterling, Rowan Atkinson, and Jasen Fisher. This is the last theatrical film produced by Lorimar before the company closed 3 years later in 1993.
As in the novel, the witch fantasises story disguised as ordinary women and murdered children, but was foiled and annihilated by her son and grandmother after the boy turned into a mouse. The film was well received by critics, but performed poorly at the box office and was also hated by Roald Dahl because the ending was different from the book.
Video The Witches (1990 film)
Plot
During the holidays with Helga's grandmother in Norway, Luke Eveshim is warned about "authentic" wizards, female devils with genocidal hatred for children, all of which emit an irritating smell for magicians. Helga tells her that her childhood friend is the victim of a witch and is damned to spend the rest of her life trapped in a painting. After Luke's parents were killed in a car accident, Helga became Luke's legal guardian and they moved to England. When building a tree house, Luke is greeted by a magician, though he sees through his deceit and avoids his potential death, hiding in a tree top. On Luke's ninth birthday, Helga fell ill with diabetes. The doctor advised them to spend the summer by the sea.
They live in a seaside resort, where Luke meets and befriends a greedy but friendly boy named Bruno Jenkins, while on the bad side of the hotel manager, Mr. Stringer, after his pet rats scare a maid who is having an affair with the manager. Also staying at the hotel is a witch convention, disguised as a Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children, with Grand High Witch, the German-faced leader of the world's magicians, attending their annual meetings.
Luke accidentally found the magicians while playing with his pet rats in the ballroom, where the magicians had their meetings. The Grand High Witch reveals his latest weapon: a formula for turning children into rats, which they will use on confectionery products in sweet shops and candy shops to be opened using the money provided by the Grand High Witch. After being given chocolate mixed with formula a few hours before, Bruno was lured into the room, turned into a mouse and escaped. Luke tries to escape and runs to Helga in their room, but finds him resting after a spell dizzy. He was kidnapped and forced to drink the potion, turning it into a mouse, even though he did not want to be shaken. He finds Bruno and reunites with Helga, who has recovered.
Luke devised a plan to kill the magicians by sneaking into the room of the Higher Magician to steal a bottle of formula. Luke managed to drop the bottle into a pot of cress soup aimed at the magician's table. Mr. Jenkins also ordered the soup, though Helga forbade her to consume it at the last minute.
When the magicians enter the dining room, Miss Irvine, the Grand High Witch's assistant who has been disillusioned by her mistress's mistreatment of him, stops working with magicians and thus avoids the massacre that will occur. The formula transforms all wizards into rats, and hotel staff and guests join forces to kill them, unknowingly removing the English from the magicians, as Helga returns Bruno to his parents. The Grand High Witch was invented by Helga, who trapped her under a water jug, allowing Mr. Stringer to send it with a meat knife.
Luke and Helga return to their homes, where they deliver the luggage of the Grand High Witch filled with money and address books of all wizards in the United States. Luke (who had quietly re-read the luggage at the resort) suggests that they might use it to root out the wizards of the world once and for all. That night, Miss Irvine visits the house and uses her powers to return Luke to his human body and return his pet rat, along with his glasses, before leaving to repeat the process with Bruno.
Maps The Witches (1990 film)
Cast
- Anjelica Huston as Miss Ernst/Grand High Witch
- Jasen Fisher as Luke Eveshim
- Mai Zetterling as Helga Eveshim
- Rowan Atkinson as Mr. Stringer
- Jane Horrocks as Miss Susan Irvine
- Charlie Potter as Bruno Jenkins
- Anne Lambton as Pamela (Black Woman)
- Angelique Rockas as Henrietta Annabel Brooks as Nicola Cuttle
- Sukie Smith as Marlene
- Bill Paterson as Herbert Jenkins
- Brenda Blethyn as Rebecca Jenkins
- Jenny Runacre as Elizabeth "Elsie"
- Emma Relph as Mildred "Millie"
- Rose English as Doreen "Dora"
- Nora Connolly as Beatrice
- Rosamund Greenwood as Janice
- Darcy Flynn as Luke's mom
- Vincent Marzello as Luke's father
- Ola Otnes as Erica's father
- Jim Carter as Andre the chef
- Roberta Taylor as Jacqueline (wizard chef)
- Stella Tanner as Loisette "Lois" Leffour
- Barbara Hicks as Regina
Dalang
The following people do special masterminds in this film:
- Anthony Asbury
- Don Austen - Form Luke Mouse, Bruno Rat Shapes
- Sue Dacre
- David Greenaway - Mouse
- Brian Henson
- Robert Tygner - Rat
- Steven Whitmire
Production
The Witches based on a book of the same name by the English writer Roald Dahl. This is the last film that Jim Henson personally worked on before his death, the last theatrical film produced by Lorimar Productions, and the last film made on the subject of Dahl before his death (both Henson and Dahl died that year).
The first part of the film was taken in Bergen in Norway. Most of the films were taken on location at the beachfront Headland Hotel in Newquay, Cornwall. During the photo shoot, Rowan Atkinson caused Mr. Bean when he left the shower tap running down his room (the porter who was hit by panic was told "go, I fell asleep"). Floods remove many of the production team's electrical equipment downstairs.
Roald Dahl originally wanted Cher to play the role of the Grand High Witch, but he was not available at the time because the actress was filming the Mermaids. Eartha Kitt, Fiona Fullerton, GeneviÃÆ'¨ve Bujold, Starr Andreeff, Olivia Hussey, Sigourney Weaver, Frances Conroy, and Liza Minnelli are at some point considered part of The Grand High Witch before casting Anjelica Huston. Casting Huston then satisfy Dahl. At that time, Huston was dating Jack Nicholson, who often called the hotel and sent large bouquets, much to the excitement of the staff.
Release
The film was scheduled to be distributed by Lorimar but when the company dismissed their theatrical distribution operations, it finally sat on the shelf for over a year after the filming was completed. The film premiered on May 25, 1990, in London and is scheduled to open the same day in the United States, but after a test screen in Florida earlier that year, Warner Bros. delaying the release of America until August. The film took $ 10,360,553 in the United States and 266,782 in Germany.
Home media
Warner Home Video first released the movie on VHS in 1991. The second release (and first release) was in VHS and for the first time on DVD in 1999. Both versions (and all TV playbacks) use original negative matte open from the movie instead linking it to 1.85: 1 (or 1.66: 1). The film was released in the Netherlands in 2009, with this DVD shown in the theater aspect ratio of 1.85: 1.
Soundtrack
The film contains an orchestra score compiled by Stanley Myers. Up to now, the soundtrack CD has not been released yet, and the whole score remains unclear. Throughout the score, Dies Irae appeared, strongly reminiscent of Symphony Fantastique Mvt Berlioz. V, "The Witches Sabbath."
Reception
The Witches were well received by critics and audiences, but performed poorly at the box office. The film holds a 100% rare spot on film critic Rotten Tomatoes site, based on reviews from 33 critics with an average rating of 7.7/10. The consensus reads: "With a very evil appearance from Angelica Huston and imaginative doll by Jim Henson, dark and intelligent Nicolas Roeg captures the spirit of Roald Dahl's writing like some other adaptations. " Roger Ebert gave the film 3 out of 4 stars, calling the movie "an interesting, ambitious and inventive film, and almost worth seeing just because of Anjelica Huston's joy in playing a totally uncompromising villain." Roald Dahl himself considers this film "really horrible" because the ending is in contrast to the book.
Awards
- Academy of Sci-Fi Fantasy, Fantasy & amp; Horror Movie (1991)
- Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Actress (Anjelica Huston)
- Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Make-up (John Stephenson)
- Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Music (Stanley Myers)
- Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Performance by Young Actor (Jasen Fisher)
- Nominated - Saturn Award for Best Supporting Actress (Mai Zetterling)
- BAFTA Awards (1991)
- Nominated - BAFTA Award for Best Hair and Makeup (Christine Beveridge)
- Boston Society of Film Critics Awards (1991)
- Winning - Boston Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress (Anjelica Huston)
- Fantasporto (1991)
- Nominated - International Fantasy Film Award for Best Movie (Nicolas Roeg)
- Hugo Awards (1991)
- Nominated - Hugo Award for Best Drama Presentation Los Angeles Critics Association Film Awards (1990)
- Winning - Los Angeles Film Critics Award for Best Actress (Anjelica Huston)
- National Film Critics Association (1990)
- Won the - National Association of Film Critics Award for Best Actress (Anjelica Huston)
- List of movies featuring diabetes
- The Witches in IMDb
- The Witches at AllMovie
- The Witches on Muppet Wiki
- The Witches at Rotten Tomatoes
Possible remakes
In 2017, Guillermo del Toro and Alfonso CuarÃÆ'³n expressed interest in making remakes of The Witches starring Jennifer Lopez.
See also
References
External links
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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